A gay man has been executed in Iran under a “sodomy” charge, according to human rights groups, in the latest example of anti-LGBTQ+ brutality in the Middle Eastern nation. The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that 10 inmates were allegedly executed in Rajai Shahr Prison, in the northern city of Karaj, on 29 June. Among them was Iman Safari-rad, whom the news agency and activists claim was likely sentenced to death for being gay. The Jerusalem Post reported that HRANA had verified Safari-rad’s identity. While Kazem Moussavi, a human rights activist from Iran exiled to Germany, claimed on Twitter that Safari-rad was killed in the capital of the Alborz Province for “sodomy”. He was killed alongside Mehdi Khalgoldi, who faced charges of “rape” – a charge often used as a pretext by officials to freely execute queer folk, a US Department of State report found. (…) For decades, those accused and convicted of same-sex activities have been beheaded, stoned to death, thrown off cliffs and amputated. A 17-year-old – charged with “rape” – was hung for having sex with a teenage boy in 2016.
via pinknews: Iran brutally executes gay man over ‘sodomy’ charges
